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Message 
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Hell <£ 



BY 

REV. JOSEPH G- BARKER. 

Published by 

CHRIS. VEASMAN, 

Dixon, Mo. 



Copyright J 903 by 
Rev. Joseph G. Barker. 



A Message from Hell 



-BY- 



/ 
REV. JOSEPH G. BARKER. 



as.* • • 

• • • « • 

• • • * 



PUBLISHED BY 

CHRIS. VEASMAN, 

DIXON, MISSOURI. 



Cranston Printing Company, 
Springfield, Mo. 



THE LIBRARY OF 


CONGRESS, 


Two Copies 


Received 


MAR U 


1903 


Copyright 


Entry 


CL&S'X" 


XXc. No. 


j"l M b 


COPY 


B. 




REV. JOSEPH G. BARKER. 



PREFATORY NOTE. 

It is needless to say much by way of preface to 
this "Message" — It will speak for itself. 

From the writer's standpoint, none but those 
"given over to hardness of heart/ ' can read this won- 
derful incident without having their souls marvelously 
stirred within them; and none but the willfully un- 
believing can say, in view of the remarkable solution 
to this so called ''Parable" herein discussed, that God 
does not hear and regard the cries of His faithful 
children. 

This Message is far above a mere form of words. 
Words of themselves are nothing, and may be much 
worse than nothing. The soul of the reader or ut- 
terer must be in them to give them life and power. 

God hears not my words. He hears me. To be 
benefitted by the Spirit fraught pages herein written, 
your soul must rise on the wings of prayer to God for 
understanding. This message is of faith, prompted 
by the Holy Spirit, and should bear fruit from the 
Father whose Spirit moved its utterance in harmony 
with His own blessed will. 

In these pages no place is given to discuss that 
which did not occur, and is recorded in the New Tes- 



tament as a warning message calculated to do much 
good. When listening to Bro. Barker preaching upon 
this subject, we have always felt that hewasiather 
like Paul, when, after referring to many of the mighty 
works wrought through faith in olden times, he said: 
"And what shall I say more? For the time would 
fail me to tell of Gideon, and of Barak, and of Sampson, 
and Jepthea, of David also and Samuel, and of the 
Prophets; who through faith subdued kingdoms, 
wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the 
mouths of lions," etc. 

Therefore we pray that through the Spirit perusal 
of these pages, precious souls may be led to flee the 
wrath of God herein portrayed; and that God's chil- 
dren be encouraged to trust Him more in every hou 
of need 

Yoke-fellow, 

H. M. SUTTON, U. D. M. 



A MESSAGE FROM HELL. 



My friend allow me to introduce you to a couple 
of my friends whom I have known for a long time — 
Dives and Lazarus whose history I wish to give* you 
in the following pages. 

I first became acquainted with these men in the 
sixteenth chapter of Luke, nineteenth to the thirty- 
first verses. Some men would make you believe that 
these were only imaginary men; but I want you to 
know them as real men like you and me; men who 
can talk, feel, see, hear and taste; and it is with this 
understanding that I proceed with the history of these 
two men's lives. 

As already suggested there are many learned men 
who tell you that this account of the Rich man and 
Lazarus is a parable. But I want you to study the 
account of Dives and Lazarus while reading this little 
book, and look upon it as real history. 

We deny then that it is a parable and affirm that 
it is a real historical account of these two men: first in 



12 A Message from Hell. 

life, second in death and third in Judgement. 

Observe reasons. 

It is not called a parable in the Bible. It is not 
like a parable. Let us compare the account of the 
Rich man and Lazarus with some of the parables ard 
see how they agree. 

"Another parable put he forth unto them saying, 
"The kingdom of Heaven is likened unto a man that 
sowed good seed in his field, but while the man slept 
his enemy came and sowed the tares among the wheat 
and went his way. But when the blade was sprung 
up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tare* 
also. So the servants of the house-holder came and 
said unto him: Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in 
thy field? Fiom whence then hath it tares? 

He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. 
The servants said unto him, Wil't thou then that 
we go and gather them up? But he said, nay; lest 
while ye gather up the tares, ye root up the wheat with 
them. Let both grow together until the harvest; In 
the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, gather 
ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles 
to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn. 
Matt. 13 — 24-30. This is a plain illustration of the 
judgement. Let us go over the exposition of the 
parable. 

First, "he that sowed the good seed is the Son of 



A Message from Hell. 14 

man. Note — whatever good seed there is in the world, 
comes from the hand of Christ and is of His sowing. 
Then "the field is the world," the world of mankind, 
a large field and capable of bringing forth good fruit; 
and it is to be lamented that it brings forth so much 
bad fruit. 

Again "the good seed are the children of the 
kingdom." Israelites indeed, incorporated in faith 
and obedience to Jesus Christ. "But the tares are 
the children of the wicked one." They are the chil- 
dren of the devil. Though they do not own his name, 
yet. they bear his image, do his lusts. 

God has so ordered it that good and bad should 
be mixed together in this world that the good may be 
exorcised, the bad left inexcusable and a difference 
made between heaven and earth. 

Again, He says: "the enemy that sowed the tares 
is the Devil." He sowed them while man slept 
and went his way. "The blade sprang up and 
brought forth fruit." The servants discovered it and 
wanted to pull them up; but the Master said, "No, let 
them grow together until the harvest, lest, while ye 
are pulling up the tares ye root up also the wheat 
with them. 

Also, "the harvest is the end of the world." 
This world will have an end. Though it continue 
long, it will not contiue always Time will be shortly 



\(> A message from Hell. 

swallowed up in eternity. At the end of the world 
there will be a great harvest-day, a day of judgement. 
At harvest all is ripe and ready to be cut down, both 
good and bad. The reapers cut down all before 
them; not a field, not a corner, is left behind. And 
again "the reapers are the angels " They shall be 
employed in the great hearvest at the end of the world. 
The angels are skillful, strong, swift and obedient 
servants of Christ. ''The Son of Man shall send 
forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his king- 
dom all things that offend, and them which do in- 
iquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: 
There shall bewailing and gnashing of teeth." The 
tares will then be gathered — The reapers, w T hose pri- 
mary work is to gather in the wheat, shall be charged 
first to gather out the tares. Though good and bad 
are together in this world, undistinguished, yet, at 
the great day they shall be parted. No tares shall be 
left among the wheat; no sinners among the saints. 

All those corrupt doctrines, worships and practices, 
which have offended, have been scandals to the church 
of the Living God, and stumbling blocks to men's 
consciences, shall be condemned, in that day by the 
Righteous Judge. In that day, shall be consumed, 
by the brightness of his coming, all the w r ood, hay and 
stubble. 

To them that do iniquity, to them that make a 



1 8 iA Message from Hell. 

trade of it and persist in it —not only those in the last 
age of Christ's kingdom upon earth but those in every 
age, will be bundled together and east into the furnace 
of fire. A bundle of atheists, a bundle of epicures, a 
bundle of persecutors, a bundle of liars and a great 
bundle of hypocrites will be cast into a furnace of fire, 
such will be the fate of wicked, michievous, people 
that are in the Church, as tares in the field; they are 
not fit for anything but fire and to it they shall go. 

Hell is a furnace of fire kindled by the wrath of 
God, and kept burning by the bundles of tares cast 
into it who will be ever burning but never consumed. 
But He glides out of the metephor into a discription 
of those torments that are designed to be set forth by 
it. 

Ther shall be weeping and gnishing of teeth; com- 
fortless sorrow, and incurable indignation at God, 
themselves, and one another; all this w T ill be the end- 
less torture of doomed souls, 

"Again the kingdom of heaven is likened to a 
grain of mustard seed which a man -took and > e owed in 
his field which indeed is the least of all seeds: but 
when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and 
becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and 
lodge in the branches thereof." Matt. 13 — 31-32. 

The ^eope of this parable is to show that the be- 
ginning, of the Gospel would be small but that its lat- 



20 A Message from Hell. 

ter end would greatly increase. In this way the Gos- 
pel church, the kingdom of God among us would be 
set up in the world: in this way the work of grace in 
the heart, the kingdom of God within us, would be 
carried on in particular persons to the end of the 
world. 

Now we have briefly reviewed two of the parables 
and find that a parable is an illustration and that this 
account of the rich man and Lazarus does not read 
like a parable. 

The parable reads — "The kingdom of heaven is 
like unto a net" — '"The kingdom of heaven is like 
unto leaven " (Note the difference in the reading.) 
"There was sl ceartain rich man which was clothed in 
purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every 
day." "That sounds like history" says every school 
boy or girl, and so it is history. It is the history of a 
certain rich man — told in a very few words It does 
not take many words to tell the history of a man 
when Jesus is the narrator. Listen! Jesus says, 
"There was a certain rich man." Who will say there 
was not? Some w T ill tell us that this rich man repre- 
sents the Jewish Nation. If so this would be a para- 
ble unlike any of the others because clouded by a 
mystery that cannot be understood by man until it is 
revealed to us by the God of Heaven. There is, in 
my mind, no doubt in the matter. It is history, and 



22 A Message from Hell. 

. the history of a wicked man; it is a matter of fact 
that is true every day, that poor godly people, tram- 
pled upon and neglected by men, die and are delivered 
from sickness, cruelty, and oppression and trans- 
planted from this world of sorrow into a world of love, 
light, joy and peace, into the heavenry mansions pre- 
pared for them by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

It is also a fact that the rich, who live in luxury 
and are cruel and unmerciful to the poor, die and go 
into a state of torment which is rendered more teirible 
to them by a knowledge of their wicked lives. 

' 'There was a certain rich man." From the 
Latin we call him Dives, a rich man. Bishop Tillotson 
tells us he has no name as it would have prevoked 
criticism and caused much ill will to have named any 
particular rich man after such a description. So we 
shall continue to call him Dives. 

Now we are told concerning this rich man first, 
that he was ' 'clothed in purple and fine linen. " He 
had fine linen and, no doubt, plenty of it; fine linen for 
day wear and fine linen for night wear. He had pur- 
ple for state occasions for that was the raiment of 
kings and princes. Some historians have thought 
that Jesus had Herod in mind as he never appeared 
before the public except in great magnificence. Sec- 
ond ' 'he fared sumptuously evey day. ' ' No doubt, his 
table was loaded with all the dainties that nature and art 



24 A Message from Hell. 

could supply; his side table loaded with massive plate; 
his servants clothed in the richest- liveries and the 
guests at his table were such as he thought w T ould 
grace it. Was there any sin in all this? It is not a 
sin to be rich; no sin to wear purple and fine linen nor 
to spread a bountiful table if w 7 e have the means to 
afford it. 

We are not told that he got his wealth by fraud 
or oppression nor that he was a drunkard and made 
others drunk. But Jesus would teach us here that a 
man may have great wealth, all the pleasures and 
pomp of this world and yet die and perish forever. 

Riches and pleasure are very dangerous and a 
great temptation to the average man; they tempt him 
to live a life of luxury and sensuality; cause him to 
forget his God and the world to come. This man 
might have been happy if he had not had these posses- 
sions and pleasures. Living a life of eaj-e and pleas- 
ure and allowing full indulgence to the lusts and appe- 
tites of the body has been the ruin of many souls. 

If he had first sought the kingdom of God and 
His righteousness all these worldly goods could have 
been added without danger to the soul because we 
would not, then, set our affections upon worldly 
things. 

If you set your affections on earthly things you 
are as sure of hell as if you v ere there now Eating 



26 A [Message from Hell. 

good food and wearing geod clothing are not sinful 
but feasting ourselves and friends forgetting the dis- 
tress oi the poor will bring down the wrath of God 
upon us and damn our i-ouls forever. Look at that 
young Lawyer in the tenth chapter of Luke's Gospel! 
What w r as the matter with him? He had kept all the 
law from childhood to manhood; yet, he loved the 
world; his heart was set on earthly things. 

"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God w T ith all thy 
heart and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength 
and with all thy mind and thy neighbor as thyself. 
This do and thou shalt live." 

Look at Abraham! He was a rich man, but he 
loved God with all his heart, mind, soul and strength, 
He was ready to surrender all to God at any time. 

God called upon him to offer his only son as a 
burnt sacrifice. Did he refuse? Did he ask God to 
excuse him or relieve him from this awful sacrifice? 
Nay! He did not murmur but went at once and made 
every preparation to obey God without delay. Note 
this, Those that obey God heartily will do it speedily; 
if we delay we w r ill lose time and our hearts will be- 
come hardened. The Bible tells of other rich men 
who were consecrated from their youth. 

In summing up this whole matter we find that 
Dives made his fatal mistake when he neglected to 
seek first the salvation of his soul. When he went 



28 z/l Message from Hell. 

into business he had his mind too much occupied with 
the ins and outs of business affairs to think of any- 
thing else. Business kept increasing and still he has 
no time for salvation. 

Now we come to the history of a Christian man 
who was happy in adversity; happy in direct poverty; 
happy in greatest misery; happy in sickness, happy in 
death: happy forever more in the presence of God. 

"There was a certain beggar named Lazarus." 
Who would dare to say that there was not a beggar by 
this name when Jesus says that there w 7 as? He was a 
beggar eminently devout and, no doubt, was well 
known at that time — he was also in great distress. 
Some great men think that Elazar or Lazarus a fitting 
name for any poor man as the word signifies "The 
help of God" which they must fly to that are destitute 
of other helps. 

This man was driven to the last extremity. He 
was as miserable as we can imagine a man in this 
world to be; hungry, sick, starving and no man's 
hand stretched forth to relieve him. His poor starved, 
emaciated body was covered with sores like Job. He 
was sick ard weak in body; this in itself was a great 
affliction: but worse than this his body was covered 
with painful sores loathsome to himself and tho^e 
about him. 

He was forced to beg his bread and was content to 



jo A Message from Hell. 

receive such scraps as might be tossed to him from 
rich men's doors. He was too sick and weak to walk 
to the rich man's house and w 7 as carried by some 
compassionate hand and laid at the rich man's gate 
Here was a poor Christian man reduced to the last 
extremity penniless; in his great distress he had no 
means of subsistance; no friends, no relatives to ex- 
tend help in the hour of. direst need. Neither did 
the church take care of him. It is an instance of the 
great degeneracy of the church that a good pious man 
like Lazarus should be allowed to perish for the want 
of food when there was plenty and to spare in the 
homes about him. 

He did not expect much from the rich man's table, 
he only desired the crumbs that fell from that table, 
(verse 21) although he ought to have had a good 
dinner. 

He would be thankful for the crumbs, for the 
broken scraps of meat, for anything the rich man 
migh bestow r ; Yea even the leavings of his dogs. The 
poor must use entreaties and be content with any 
thing that charity bestoweth. This poor man did not 
lie there howling, boisterous, annoying the household 
by his noisy complaints, crying aloud about his needs; 
but he lay there quietly, silently, wholly resigned to 
God's will and desiring to be fed with the crumbs. 

This man was a poor, sick, miserable man, so far 



9 2 A Message from Hell. 

as outward appearances go, yet he was happy for he 
was in favor with God, basking continually in the 
sunlight of God's love. It is often the fate of some of 
the dearest of God's saints to be afflicted in this world 
while the wicked are prospering and surrounded with 
an abundance of the good things of this life. In this 
instance we have a child of wrath and an heir of Hell 
surrounded with all the luxuries and comforts that 
wealth can provide faring sumptuously every day; 
and a child of love and an heir of heaven lying at the 
gate perishing with hunger; perishing for lack of the 
barest necessities of life. 

We have no record that Dives abused him or 
forbid him the use of his gate; neither does it say he 
did him any harm; but it is intimated that he had no 
concern for him, that he slighted him; he took no 
care of him although it was a case worthy of charity. 
A little act of kindness would have been a great thing 
for Lazarus. Any one whose heart was not hardened 
by worldliness and selfish pride could not help but be 
moved by compassionate sympathy towards him as he 
had a good character and everything that could recom- 
mend him. 

Yet in spite of everything the rich man took no 
notice of him would not even order him taken to an 
outbuilding and lodged therein but allowed him to lie 
on the bare ground. There could be no comfortable 
couch for the dying Lazarus. 



34 A Message from Hell. 

Our Savior gives as a reason tor the most fearful 
doom. "I was hungry and ye gave me no meat " It 
was as if Christ had been laying out there at the gate. 
The rich man must answer to Him for it is just as if 
it had been Je<ms who lay and .starved at his gate. 
"As oft as ye did it not unto the least of these disci- 
ples ye did it not unto me;" Christ espouses his peo- 
ple's cause and interests himself in their interests and 
considers himself received, loved and owned in them. 
I wonder how those rich people who have read the 
Gospel of Christ and say that they believe it can be so 
unconcerned, as they often are in the necessities and 
miseries of the poor and afflicted. 

"Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores." 
Dives probably kept a kennel of hounds or other dogs 
for his diversion and to please his fancy and these 
dogs were well cared for and fed full and plenty while 
Lazarus lay at the gate starving for the crumbs which 
would have kept life in him The rich will have a 
great deal to answer for hereafter who feed and pamper 
dogs and other pets to the neglect of the worthy poor; 
and it is a great aggravation of the uncharitableness 
of many rich people that they bestow that upon their 
fancies and follies which would supply the necessity, 
and rejoice the hearts, of many a good christian 
in distress. Yea, they are an offense to God, and they 
put a contempt on human nature that pamper their 



p A Message from Hell. 

dogs and horses while the families of their poor neigh- 
bors starve. Now these dogs came and licked his 
sores which may be taken as an aggravation of his 
misery. His sores were bloody which, probably, 
tempted the dogs to lick them as they did the blood 
of Naboth and Ahab, I Kings 21-29 or in Ps. 68 — 23 
we read ''that the tongues of dogs were dipped in the 
blood of enemies." We see that these dogs -attacked 
him while he was alive and he had not strength to 
drive them away. The dogs were like their master, 
cruel who thought they fared sumptuously when re- 
galing themselves on human gore. 

Or it may be taken as a relief to him in his mis- 
ery — the master was hardened towards him but the 
dogs were compassionate and came and licked his 
sores which eased them. It is not said that they 
sucked them but they licked them which was good for 
them. The dogs were kinder to him than their 
master. 

Now having reviewed the lives of these two men 
let us examine their death record. 

We have seen the different conditions of this 
wicked Dives and poor saintly Lazarus and as we look 
at the surroundings it would seem that the wicked 
rich man has the advantage. But let us wait and see 
the end. 

They both died, verse 22. The beggar died and 



38 A Message from Hell. 

the rich man died. Death comes to all men; to the 
rich and to the poor; to the godly and to the ungodly. 
One dieth in his full strength trusting in Him who is 
able to save to the utermost; and the other in all the 
bitterness of a soul that realizes that he is eternally 
lost. 

Death is a great leveler — they shall both go down 
to the dust (Job 21 — 27). 

Death is no respecter of persons. The rich die 
for death respects not their wealth; the poor die for 
death respects not their poverty. Lazarus died that 
he might be released from pain, sorrow and mise^, 
and enter into his reward. The rich man died that 
he might close a wicked and useless life and render an 
account to God for his actions And now I say to 
you dear reader whether you be rich or poor it con- 
cerns you to prepare for death for death waits to claim 
you as his prey for 

"For with equal pace, impartial fate 
Knocks at the palace as the cottage gate. 5 ' 
The beggar died first. We often wonder why it 
is that God takes good pious people out of the world 
and leaves the wicked to flourish and do more wicked- 
ness but thus it is and what a glorious change for 
Lazarus when his soul was freed from its tenement 
of clay and earned to that haven of rest where death, 
sickness and sorrow are no more; ''where the wicked 



40 A Message from Hell. 

cease from troubling and the weary are at rest." 

It is said that the beggar died. Nothing is said 
about his burial. His burial if he had any was such 
as would be bestowed upon a dead ass. They proba- 
bly dug a hole somewhere and threw him in or may 
be allowed the dogs that licked his sores to gnaw his 
bones. 

The beggar died and was carried by angels into 
Abraham's bosom. The word carried tells the story 
of his acceptance by God. The golden ladder was 
run down from heaven and rested upon the ground at 
the rich man's gate and God honored him by sending 
a convoy of angels to be present at his death — the 
grandest company ever gathered around a dying 
couch. They ministered unto him. God had given 
them charge concerning him to bear him up on their 
hands. While he struggled with death they wiped 
the cold sweat from his brow and moistened his lips. 
As his eyes closed upon the scenes of this life his 
spiritual eyes were opening upon the heavenly compa- 
ny gathered round where he lay upon the ground; I 
think I hear him say "There they are, don't you see 
them? ,J Mother! Mother! Jesus has come for me. 
See! his tongue becomes stiff and he talks no more. 
All is quiet except his heaving breast; his breath is 
growing shorter and shorter, with long intervals be- 
tween each breath. Finally all is still outside the rich 



42 A Message from Hell. 

man's gate — the groaning has ceased and Lazarus is 
dead. 

His soul had come out of the old body or house of 
clay. Notice — The soul of Lazarus existed in a state 
of separation from his body. It did not die or fall 
asleep with his body but was in a state of conscious 
separation. It lived and acted; it knew what it did 
and what was done to it. His soul was removed from 
this Ian 1 of sin and suffering to the world of spirits or 
in other words returned to God, the author of its be- 
ing. This is implied in its being carried by the 
angels. They were ministering angels to this poor, 
down trodden, and neglected child of God, while he 
lived and in death and at last accompanied him on his 
journey to his heavenly home to be both his guide and 
guard through regions unknown and unsafe. 

There is that innate principle in the soul of man 
which would cause it to spring upward were it not 
chained to this earth and clogged by it as all unsanc- 
tified souls are. The soul of man springs upward as 
soon as it is freed by death. Christ in his tender so- 
licitude for those that are His will not allow those that 
he has bought with His own precious blood to make 
this journey alone, but sends His messengers to 
fetch them to Himself. It would seem that one mes- 
senger would be enough to send but many are sent as 
in the case of Elijah. 

It is said that Amasis, king of Egypt had his 



_/_/ A Message from Hell. 

chariot drawn by kings, but what was this honor in 
comparison to that of the poor, despised Lazarus? 
When Lazarus died, one of God's saints died; he was 
the child of a king an heir to glory and he must be 
brought home in state, safely and honorably; and thus 
he ascended to his Father's house, to take possession 
of the mansion prepared for him, with all the pomp 
and splendor that could be devised by the angels of 
heaven. Poor diseased and suffering Lazarus freed 
from his misery and in the company of the angels of 
God; they w^ere not afraid to touch him for the sores 
were on his body not on his soul, for that is pure and 
clean and without blemish. It has been washed 
whiter than snow by the precious blood of his crucifi- 
ed and risen Savior. 

His soul was carried into Abraham's bosom. The 
Jews expressed the happiness of the redeemed after 
death in three ways, (i) "They go to the garden of 
Eden." (2) ' 'They go to be under the throne." (3) 
"And they go to the bosom of Abraham." 

The last expression is the one made use of by the 
Saviour. Abraham was called the father of the faith- 
ful and as the stream of time rolls by the faithful 
christians are gathering around him in his home in 
glory; and, when they weary and w 7 orn out with life's 
conflict he like a loving parent welcomes them and 
lays them in his bosom. 

Abraham was a wealthy man yet in heaven he can, 



s 



46 zA Message from Hell. 

receive poor L,az irus to his bosom. The rich and the 
poor are on the same footing in heaven. He, who was 
not counted worthy to enter the rich man's gate is 
now conducted into the dining room to feast with the 
patriarchs of old. He whom the rich man scorned to 
place with his dogs is now an honored inmate of the 
heavenly palace. What a contrast between his former 
condition and his latter state! 

In support of this heavenly doctrine let us quote 
some of the vvords of our Savior. 

"Verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my 
words and believeth on Him that sent me, hath ever- 
lasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; 
but is passed from death unto life (John 15 — 24). 

In order to be a christian we have first to hear 
the word of Christ. God has given us hearing and 
the first thing a sinner has to do is to hear. Sinners 
generally think they have to do more than that; but 
this is all that is required for a start; just hear God's 
word is your first step. The second step for the sin- 
ners is to come to the Savior which is repentance. 
This is a dark and troublesome road to got over. 
The sinner has a bitter experience on his journey to 
the light house. He is now condemned and hand- 
cuffed with a ball and chain to his leg in the full light 
of his doom; all hope of saving himself has abandoned 
him. He feels the quicksands giving way under his 



^8 zA Message from Hell. 

feet to swallow him up; he thinks of trying to make 
his escape but every effort only sinks him deeper. 

Dark storm^ are gathering, convolving clouds 
charged with no common wrath. Terrors set them- 
selves in battle array before him. 

Tempests are getting ready to burst upon him 
which might sweep all mankind in a moment to eter- 
nal ruin Hark! poor sinner hear ye not the subter- 
rmean thunder? Fed ye not the tremor of the moun- 
tain? It is the shock of Satan's artillery; it is the ex- 
plosion of the magazine of vengeance. Lo! the earth 
is quaking, the r< cks are rending. 

Now leap the lions roaring upon their prey; and 
the bulls of Bashan are bellowing; and dogs of perdi- 
tion are barking, and the Unicorns toss their horns on 
high: the devil dancing with exultant joy, clanks his 
iron chnins; he thrusts up his hands in defiance to- 
wards the face of Jehovah: he seeks by all the powers 
of darkness to capture the poor trembling sinner and 
pen him up forever in that prison from which no slave 
i< ever freed. 

The poor sinner in his lost and perishing condi- 
tion falls prostrate to the ground saying: "Lord save 
me or I perish. 

The Angels lift him up, and deliver to him the 
pardon ^ent him fr >m God the Father. "Thy sins are 



yo A message from Hell. 

forgiven thee." That is the everlasting life of my 
text and the passing from death to life. 

"And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall 
never die." (John n — 26). His body will die but 
the soul shall live forever. ' 'Verily, verily, I siy 
unto you if a msn keep my saying he shall never see 
death." (John 8 — 51). No: we shall be so delighted 
with the heavenly host that gathers round our bed, and 
the sweet music that fills the air that we will not 
think of it being death. What is death? Death is 
caused by the withdrawel of the spiritual body from 
this natural covering. It is no more changed by 
death in its form and organization than the hand is 
changed by withdrawing it from the glove. 

All the senses gain just what the hand gains. A 
dead covering is removed from them. Death has al- 
ways been represented as a mighty merciless skeleton 
sweeping the young and the old alike to destruction. 
What a mistake! He is the most loving, gentle, and 
beautiful of all the angels. He comes to cherish, not 
to destroy; to transplant not to kill. Death, blessed, 
lovely death, opens the prison doors to the soul, 
breaks off our chains and w T ith gentle hands and smil- 
ing face leads from this land of night and storms, 
from this cold inhospitable desert land to a bright 
eternal home. 

"The rich man also died and was buried." We- 



^ 2 A Message from Hell. 

proceed next to the consideration of the death of the 
rich man. The term death is most commonly applied 
to that separation of soul and body, which is the most 
manifest form in which the penalty of sin is seen 
among men. There is a death of the soul also and it 
is something far more to be dreaded, by every one, 
than the death of the body; but this death of the soul 
is spiritual in its nature and does not forbid the con- 
tinued existance of the soul; and its dread realities 
will be more plainly evinced in the unseen hereafter. 

The death of the wicked is easily accounted for 
because it constitutes a part of the penalty of sin, to 
which the scriptures teach all men are liable; but from 
which the people of God are exempted because Christ 
has redeemed them from the curse of the law. "The 
death of the saints" instead of being accursed is 
"precious" in the sight of the Lord, and this is be- 
cause he has redeemed them. Their death is a death 
unto the Lord." The sting has been removed. 

None of these things are true of the wicked; they 
neglected or rejected the offer of salvation through 
Christ Jesus; and there is no other method of escape 
from the penalty; it rests upon him in all its fullnes. 

We have here the sentence uttered against those 
who are still in sin; still in rebellion against the King 
of Heaven It occurs in the same chapter with that 
of the righteous. 

Christ tells us: "Then shall he sav unto them on 



54 A Message from Hell. 

the left hand, 'Depart from me ye cursed into the 
enternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his 
angels", — "and these shall go away into eternal pun- 
ishment. " (Matt. 25 ch.) Thus we find the sinner 
not only driven away from the Fountain of all good, 
from the savior, from all hope of salvation but he 
must be driven away under the burthen of a curse, 
that curse of the law on every one that breaks it: Gal, 
3 10. A similar sentence occures in Luke — "I tell 
you I know not whence ye are; deport from me all ye 
workers of iniquity. 

The different elements included in this sentence 
are also taught of the wicked elsewhere in the Scrip- 
tures as follows: "He that believeth not shall be 
condemned." "Rendering vengeance to them that 
know not God." "Who shall suffer punishment." 
"Severed from among the righteous." "Cast into 
outer darkness where the smoke of their torments 
shall ascend up forever and ever." "The rich man 
also died and was buried." 

That word "buried" tells the story of his aliena- 
tion from God, loss of God's favor; loss of acceptance 
with Him. "Buried" — the joys of salvation in this 
world and the life to come he will never know. "Bur 
ied,". to all that is good now, henceforth, and forever; 
but, resurrected to everlasting shame and condemna- 
tion. "And in hell he lifted up his eyes," to behold 



56 A message from Hell. 

the eternal fiery flood rolling its flaming billows over 
him. There shrieks are heard, there bitter wailing.% 
lamentations, moans, and blasphemies against the great 
Power in Heaven; there millions ot wicked lost souls 
in agony gather round to see who the newcomer can 
be, they gnash their teeth and curse him. They 
would destroy him and devour one another if it were 
possible. They weep groan and curse the day of their 
birth as they plunge down over precipice after preci- 
pice headlong down into the deepest hell shrieking 
in deepest, darkest, despair because they were j-o 
foolish as to neglect the salvation of their souls while 
in the world. They pray for mercey and are reminded 
of the time when they of their own accord, closed the 
door of mercy against themselves forever. The re- 
membrance of this is like a great fiery serpent which 
coils itself about them fastening its fangs of fire into 
their souls. There is no greater grief than to remem- 
ber days of joy when misery is at hand. They cry 
for water to cool their parched tongues and there is no 
water in hell for them. Those who might be moved 
to sympathize with them are cut off by an impassable 
gulf; and the roaring flames of eternal misery roll up 
and seize their prey while the smoke of their torments 
ascends up through all the ages of Eternity. k 'And in 
hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and 
seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazaruse in his bosom." 



=)8 A Message from Hell. 

"Fear not them which kill the body but are not able 
to kill the soul, but rather fear Him which is able to 
destroy both soul and body in hell." 

The rich man is in hell — that abode peopled by 
the wicked and unsanctified souls after death has 
separated them from the body, and there he lies in 
agony unspeakable. When the souls of the righteous 
are freed from the burden of flesh they enter into a 
state of joy and felicity; so wicked and unsatisfied 
souls after being delivered from the burden of flesh 
are in misery endless and remediless which will be 
increased at the resurrection. 

The whole life of the rich man had been given up 
to worldly pleasures and as he was wholly taken up 
with them he chose them for his portion and conse- 
quently he was absolutely unfit for heavenly society. 
To such a mind there could be no joy in heavenly 
pleasures, therefore, he is shut out from them; and 
because he had been unmerciful with God's children 
he is cut off from mercy and has judgment without 
mercy. The happiness of Lazarus only makes his 
misery greater. 

He lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off 
and Lazarus in his bosom, It is the soul that is in 
torment and the eyes of the mind that are lifted up. 
He looks around, doubtless axpecting to find himself 
in company with Lazarus; he does not see him but as 



60 A Message from Hell. 

he lifts his eyes he sees Abraham afar off; methinks 
what a pleasure to see Abraham. Ah! the joy is 
turned to bitterness — he seeth him afar off. No one 
near or around him but the devils and damned com- 
panions — all is agony, all is horror; dreadful sights 
and dreadful sounds around him, while around 
poor dispised Lazarus are the holy angels filling heav- 
en with the songs anc shouts of the redeemed. It 
will be one of the torments of hell to look over and 
see the City of God with its walls of salvation and 
gates of praise surrounded with broad rivers on which 
no man-of-war ever has or ever will float. All the 
scenes of hell form one continuous horror. The 
sight of mother, father, brother, sister, husband or 
wife would only add to their misery. 

Remember dear reader you are not wanted in hell 
even by a brother; you would only add to their 
misery. 

'Don' t go there! He saw Lazarus in his bosom; 
that same Lazarus that he had thought too poor, 
mean, and contemptable, to be noticed; he now sees 
him exalted and the sight of his happiness brings to 
mind his own barbarous treatment of him and makes 
his own misery more grievous. We have now finished" 
the history of these two men's lives and reviewed their 
death record. And now my Dear reader follow me 
to some lofty height where we can see and hear them 



(,2 A Message from Hell. 

in the world beyond, and listen to the message with 
our own ears. We will now give our attention to 
"The (Message From Hell/' 

4 'And he cried and said: Father Abraham, have 
mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the 
tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I 
am tormented in this flame." (verse 24). These 
words were spoken in hell by the rich man robed in 
flames of fire, and speaking words that drop from his 
lips like live coals of fire rolling down from the great 
furnace of eternal flames and falling upon the ears of 
Abraham afar off. 

And now one of the most wonderful dialogues 
ever heard by man takes place between the glorified 
saint and the damned rich man. 

In Revelations 14-10 we find damned sinners tor- 
mented in the presence of the Lamb and in Isaiah 
66-23 the faithful servants of God looking upon them 
that have transgressed the covenant, there where 
their worm dieth not and their fire is not quenched. 
Xow in this dialogue we have first a request which 
the rich man made to Abraham for some relief from 
his sufferings. And seeing Abraham afar off, he cried 
to him; cried aloud, shrieked as one in great agony 
so that he may provoke compassion for his great suf- 
fering. He that in this world was proud and arro- 
gant: that was accustomed to command now begs; 



64 A Message from Hell. 

aloud, louder than ever Lazarus did when lying at his 
gate. His songs of revelry are all turned to shrieks 
for help. 

And cried and said "Father Abraham" Ah! my 
friends there are many in hell that can call Abraham 
father, that were his seed after the flesh yea many 
that were in name and profession the children of the 
covenant made with Abraham. 

No doubt this man had scoffed at Abraham and 
his story as do the scoffers of today; but I tell you the 
day is not far distant when they will be glad to scrape 
up an acquaintance with him and also claim relation- 
ship; and those who slight Christ will pay court to 
him and say, Lord, Lord. The rich man makes known 
to Abraham his dreadful condition:— "I am tormented 
in this flame." He complains that he is tormented, 
that is, his soul is tormented; it is such a fire as can 
operate upon his soul. 

The wrath of God is fastening on him a guilty 
conscience. Horrible flames leap upon him and rush 
over him like the mighty cyclone sweeping from place 
to place upon the earth; such a fire, horror of mind is. 

There can be nothing more horrible or painful 
or more terrible to the body than to be burned by fire. 
The agonies of the damned are as by fire. 

"Have mercy on me!" Oh my friends the day is 
coming when those that make light of divine mercy 



66 A Message from Hell. 

will beg hard for it Oh, for mercy, mercy! the day of 
mercy will be past and gone for ever. The door of 
mercy will be closed against you as it was against the 
rich man. He had no mercy on poor Lazarus, yet, he 
expects Lazarus to have mercy on him for, he thinks 
Lazarus is better natured than ever he was so he asks a 
particular favor. "Serd Lazarus that he may dip the 
tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue." 

What is his trouble? Oh, my tongue, my tongue! 
It might be inferred that he was more tormented in 
that member than any other part of the body. The 
tongue is one of the organs of speech and by the tor- 
ment of that he is put in mind of all the wicked words 
that he had spoken against God and man; all his curs- 
ing and swearing and blaspheming; all his filthy 
speeches. 

By his words he is condemned and tormented in 
his tongue. The tongue is also one of the organs of 
tasting, and the torments of that member will remind 
him of his great relish of the delights of sense which 
he had rolled under his tonge." 

"Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in 
water and cool my tongue." He does not say "Father 
Abraham, send for me to come out of this dreadful 
place, relieve me from my misery." No he utterly 
despaired of this. Lost souls in hell cannot truly de- 
sire the happiness of heaven so he asks as small a fa- 



68 A Message from Hell. 

vor as possible— a drop of water to cool his parched 
tongue for one mement. But why does he want 
Lazarus to bring it? It might be that he had some 
evil design upon Lazarus and thought if he could only 
get him within reach he might prevent him from re- 
turning to his abode of rest. 

When the heart of a sinner is filled with wrath 
against God it is filled with wrath against the people of 
God and would rend them in pieces. 

But it may be that he intended to show respect to 
Lazarus as one to whom he is willing now to ask 
favors. Plato, in describing the miseries of the damned 
says: "They are continually raving on those whom 
they have murdered or in any way injured, calling 
upon them to forgive the wrongs done to them." 
And my friends, remember, the time is coming when 
those who now hate and despise the people of God will 
gladly receive a kindness from them. 

We will now listen to the reply which Abraham 
gave to his request. He did not grant it, there is no 
record that he would grant one drop of water to cool 
his tongue. 

There is no promise that the damned in hell shall 
have the least release from their torment not so much 
as a drop of water to cool their tongue. 

If we improve the day of our opportunities we 
may be comforted in the knowledge that we shall 



yo A message from Hell. 

have everlasting streams of mercy. God offers mercy 
now to all repentant sinners and if you reject his offer 
you may rest assured that in hell you will be beyond 
the reach of mercy. 

The rich man receives his recompense; he refused 
a crumb and now is refused a drop of water. "Askand 
it shall be given you;" and now dear reader remember 
that "Now is the accepted time" and if you fail to 
take advantage of it and enter within the portals of 
hell you are doomed; hope and mercy can not enter 
there. If Abraham had only said "No you can not 
have water to abate your torments it would have been 
very sad; but he says a great deal m:>re and every word 
he says only adds to his torment and makes the flames 
of hell hotter and hotter; everything is a torment in 
hell. 

"He calls him "Son "This only aggravates the 
denial of his request; it shuts up the compassion of a 
father from him. 

No doubt he had been a son, but a rebellious son 
and now an abandoned and disinherited >ne. From 
this, you may now see how foolish it is to rely upon 
that oft repeated plea il We have Abraham to our 
Father/' We ha\e found one in hell who will be 
there forever — and Abraham called him son. 

"Son, lemember, that thou in thy lifetime receiv- 
est thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things." 

"Son, remember! O remembrance, remembrance, 






j 2 A Message from Hell. 

remembrance! That was just what he did not want 
to do. The memories of the damned souls will be their 
tormentors; by stirring up and awakening con- 
science to do its office which they would not suffer it to 
do here. 

Son, remember, this is the uncapping of the oil 
well which shall supply the fuel to the flames of hell 
forever and ever. We call upon sinners to remember 
in this world but they still the voice of conscience 
and refuse to let memory do her work. They will not 
remember. O, my reader, remember thy Creator 
thy Redeemer, thy latter end — they turn a deaf ear to 
these reminders. Justly therefore will their everlast- 
ing misery arise from "Son remember/' and to this 
they will not be able to turn a deaf ear. "Son remem- 
ber" the many warnings that were given thee not to 
come to this place which thou wouldst not regard; 
remember the fair offers made thee of eternal life and 
glory which you would not accept? 

But that which he is here put in mind of is: 
(i) That thou in thy lifetime received thy good 
things. He does not say he abused them but that he 
received them: Remember what a bountiful benefac- 
tor God has been to thee, how ready he was to do thee 
good; and you can not say he owes you anything: no 
not even a drop of water. What he gave thou hast 
received and that is all. And now, what hast thou 



74 A Message from Hell. 

done? Thou hast not given him even thankful ac- 
knowledgements for the favors received Not only 
have you not made any grateful returns for them or 
improvement on them but you have been the grave of 
God's blessings, the grave in which they were buried. 
4 'Thou receivedst thy good things. " You re- 
ceived and used them as if they had been your own 
and not accountable to anyone for them. Remember 
you chose. the good things of yonder world, the meat, 
the drink and clothes of the richest and finest. You 
set your affections on them and they were thy reward 
and thy consolation; thou didst agree for a penny and 
thou hast had it; you were for the good things of thy 
life time and no thought for better things in the world 
to come, and there is no reason why he should expect 
them now. The day of your good things is past and 
gone and now is the day of thy evil things. You have 
already had the last drop from the vials of mercy that 
you could expect to fall to your share and now nothing 
but vials of wrath without mixture remains for you. 
"Son remember," what evil things Lazarus received 
and now you envy him his happiness here. Think of 
the misery he was in while he lay at your gate, while 
you had so much more good than should have fallen 
to the lot of so bad a man; he suffered for the crumb 
that fell from your table, but you would not give it to 
him; no you would not give him a bed of straw for a 



yo A Message from Hell, 

death bed. Lazarus received his evil things and bore 
them patiently, received them as Job did as coming 
from the hand of God. If we receive good from the 
hand of God shall we not receive evil also? 

Lazarus received them as a physic appointed for the 
cure of his spiritual distempers, and the cure was ef- 
fected. Wicked people have good things in this life 
only, and at death they are forever separated from 
them ; so godly people have evil only in this world for 
at death they are called home to join the redeemed in 
songs of everlasting joy around the throne of God 
throughout all the ages of eternity. 

"Now he is comforted! Heaven is comfort and 
hell is torment; heaven is joy, peace and happiness; 
hell is weeping, wailing and inexpressable agony. 
The soul, as soon as it leaves the body goes either to 
heaven or hell; goes either to comfort or torment im- 
mediately and does not sleep or go to purgatory. 

Heaven will be a comfort indeed to those who 
have come up through great tribulation; those who 
had grace, but little comfort in this world when they 
have fallen asleep in Christ; and of them, we can 
truly say — Now they are comforted and he shall wipe 
all tears away and they shall have no more sorrow 
In heaven there is everlasting comfort, while on the 
other hand, hell will be everlasting torment. Hell 
will be hell, indeed, to those that go there from the 



j8 A Message from Hell. 

midst of the enjoyment and pleasures of sense. To 
them the torture is the greater as temporal calamities, 
they are described to be -as the tender and delicate 
woman that would not set so much as the soul of her 
foot to ground for tenderness and delicacy. See Deut. 
28-56. 

No relief by the ministry of Lazarus. "Besides all 
this" — worse yet— "between us and you there is a 
great gulf fixed," an impassable gulf — a great chasm 
so there can be no visiting between hell and heaven, 
between glorified saints and damned sinners. The 
kindest saint in heaven can not visit the regions of 
the damped, neither can they do any thing to comfort 
or relieve. 

"They that would pass hence to you can not." 
Nor can the most daring sinner in hell force his w T ay 
out of that prison — can not pass over that great gulf. 
"They can not pass to us that would come from 
thence. ' ' You can not expect it for the door of mercy 
is shut and the bridge is down. But blessed be God 
there is no gulf fixed between a state of nature and 
grace in this world and we can pass from one to the 
other, from sin to God. But if we die in our sins the 
door of God's mercy is forever closed, there is no re- 
lief, no help for us, we have been the instruments for 
our own doing. We have deliberately, and in spite of 
all warnings cast ourselves into the pit of destruction ; 



80 A message from Hell. 

there is no coming out: there is no water no redemp- 
tion. This impassable gulf was fixed by the decrees 
of God and all the powers of earth can not change it. 
So this miserable creature must abandon himself to 
despair. It is too late for relief or any change in his 
condition whatever. This wretched condition might 
have been prevented in time past but it is too late 
now. The state of the damned sinner is fixed by an 
irreversable and unalterable sentence. The door of 
hell is closed by a stone that can not be rolled away. 

Again we hear a voice coming up from the pit of 
flame and smoke to his father, Abraham: but not for 
himself this time — his mouth is stopped; he has noth- 
ing to say in answer to Abraham's denial of a drop of 
water. Damned sinners are made to know that the 
sentence they are under is just; they make no objec- 
tion to it but humbly bow in submission to their fate 
as this rich man did when he found he could not ob- 
tain one drop of water to cool his tongue. There is 
no exageration to say he gnawed his tongue for pain 
as those are said to do on whom one of the vials of 
God's wrath is pourd out. Rev. 16-10. The shrieks 
and outcries which we may suppose to be now uttered 
by him were hideous. 

On coming to himself and finding that he still has 
the opportunity of speaking to Father Abraham he will 
improve it for the relatives he left behind who he knows 



82 A Message from Hell. 

are walking in the broad way which leadeth to destruc 
tion. He knows they are faring sumptuously and 
spending their time riotously and now if he could he 
would warn them and set a different example for them 
to follow, but it is too late. But he will not let the op- 
portunity pass to beg Father Abraham to send Laz- 
arus to his father's house. "/ Pray thee/' Oh deny 
me not this! If he had prayed when he was on earth* 
he might have been heard. He now prays in vain. 
Thou hast denied me the former request, surely for 
the sake of the poor blind sinner on earth thou wilt 
not deny me this. For thou knowest there is a great 
gulf fixed and there is no getting out hence when 
they are once here. O send and warn them not to 
come to this place of torment! There is a great gulf 
fixed between you and me but there is no such gulf 
betwixt you and them. Then he said "I pray thee, 
therefore, father that thou wouldst send him to my 
father's house for I have five brethren, that he might 
testify to them lest they also conic to this place of tor- 
ment " I presume this is the first time he has 
ever been interested in foriegn missions. He would 
go to the foreign field himself if he could get out of 
his prison or he would give all that he possessed on 
earth if he had it with him to have Lazarus go back 
to earth to warn his brethren not to come to that place 
of torment. 

Send Lazarus back to my father's house, he 



84 A Message from Hell. 

knows well enough where it is, he has been there 
many times and been denied the crumbs that fell from 
my table. He knows I have five brethren there. If 
he goes back and appears to them they will know him 
and believe what he says for they know him to be an 
honest man. 

Oh father let him go and testify to them; let him 
tell then of my condition and that I brought myself 
to it by luxury and sensuality and my unmercifulness 
to the poor. Let him tell them not to walk in my 
footsteps, nor to go on in the way wherein I led them 
and left them, lest they also come to this place of tor- 
ment. He would have them stopped in thir sinful 
course. 

Why does he not say give me leave to go to them 
that I may testify to them. Ah he knew that there 
was a great gulf fixed over which he could not cross. 
He despaired of a permission so favorable to himself; 
and he knew that if he went he would frighten them 
out of their wits. 

Send Iyazarus whose address will be less terrible 
and yet his testimony will be sufficient to frighten 
them out of their sins. Therefore he would raise the 
dead to prevent his brothers from coming to that place 
of torment, partly in tenderness to them for whom he 
had a natural affection; he knew their temper their 
temptations, their ignorance, their infidelity, their 



86 A message from Hell. 

inconsideratioa and wished to prevent the destruction 
ihey were running into. 

And it was partly in tenderness to himself; for 
their coming to that place of torment would aggravate 
his own misery to think he had helped to show them 
the way to that place. 

When partners in sin come to be partners in woe, 
as tares bound in bundles for the fire they will be a 
terror to one another. 

And in behalf of the damned I would say to all 
who may read this book, don't go there. Your 
mother, if she was there, would not want you to come 
to that awful place. So, out of pure sympathy for 
those miserable damned sinners don't go there; the 
very sight of you will only add to their misery; and in 
answer to this prayer, ,l I pray thee send him to my 
father's house," I preach this sermon and plead with 
poor misguided sinners not to go to that place of tor- 
ment, for you see they would send you a missionary all 
the way from heaven to earth, it it were possible, to 
warn you not to come to that place of torment but to 
tread the straight and narrow path which leads to the 
courts of heaven. 

Yea, I believe I atn writing this book and preach- 
ing this sermon in answer to the prayers of those 
wretched souls. I believe they all join in saying amen 



88 A Message from Hell. 

every time I try to warn sinners not to go to that 
place of torment. 

Think of it while you are reading this sermon 
millions of poor damned sinners are praying for you: 
praying that you will take warning and repent of your 
sins while you can; while there is no gulf between 
you and the throne of grace, while God is calling 
"Son give me thy heart." He leaves you to decide 
t^is question. You must decide it for yourself. 
"Choose ye this day whom ye will serve. God or the 
devil." God gives you your choice, you can turn 
from sin, follow God and lie in the bosom of Abra- 
ham after death or, you can go on in your sins and 
afer death you can lift up your eyes in hell being tor- 
mented. The rich man made his choice and is reaping 
his reward. 

You are going to reap your reward; it is for you 
to say what that reward shall be. Will it be everlast- 
ing life, or will it be everlasting shame and condem- 
nation? 

Will he say to you in that day "Come ye blessed 
of my Father inherit the kingdom prepared for you 
from the foundation of the world?" Or will he say, 
ilc Departfrom me ye cursed?" Every word has a sting 
in it like that of the trumpet of Sinai, waxing louder 
and louder every accent more and more doleful and 
exclusive of comfort. " Depart from me." 

In this world voti are often called to come to 



go A Message from Hell. 

Christ, to come for life and rest but if you turn a deaf 
ear to His calls, you will therefore, justly, be told to 
depart from Him; to depart from the Fountain of all 
good; to depart from the Savior, and therefore, from 
all hope of salvation. 

"Depart from me ye cursed." Those who will 
not come to Christ and inherit a blessing must depart 
from him under the curse of the law; the curse that is 
on every one that breaks it. (Gal. 3 — =lo). 

"They have sold themselves, have laid themselves 
under the curse." (Isa. 50 — 1). 

But if they must depart, and depart with a curse, 
may they not go into some place of ease and rest? 
Will it not be misery enough for them to bewail their 
loss? 

No, there is a punishment of sense, as well as 
loss; they must go into fire, into torment as grievous 
as that of fire to the body, and much more. This fire is 
the wrath of the eternal God fastening upon the guilty 
soul and coscience of each condemned sinner. They 
have made themselves fuel for it. 

"Our God is a consuming fire" and sinners fall 
immediately into his hands. (Heb. 12 — 29. Rom. 
11— 8-9). 

Now if they must depart into fire may it not be 
some light or gentle fire? 

"No, it is prepared fire; it is a torment ordained 
of old." (Isa. 30—33)- 



Q2 A Message from Hell. 

The damnation of sinners is often spoken of as an 
act of divine power; "He is able to cast into hell; in 
the vessels of wrath He makes his power known; it is 
a destruction from the presence of the Lord and from 
the glory of his power. ' ' 

In this may be seen what a provoked God can do 
to make a provoking creature miserable. "Depart 
from me." "Into prepared fire;" now may this be of 
short continuance, let them but pass through fire; no, 
the fire of God's wrath will be an everlasting fire; a fire, 
that fastening and preying upon immortal souls, can 
never go out for want of fuel or being kindled and 
kept burning by the wrath of an immortal God. 
Neither can it be extinguished by the streams of mercy 
and grace as they are forever excluded. 

If a drop of water be denied to cool the tongue, 
buckets of water will never be granted to quench this 
flame. 

If they must depart, doomed to endless misery' 
may they not have some good company there? No, 
none but the devil and his angels: their sworn ene- 
mies, who helped to bring them to this misery and 
will triumph over them in it. 

They served the devil while on earth and there- 
fore are justly sentenced to be where he is, as those 



Q4 A Message from Hell. 

that serve Christ are taken to be with Him where 
He is. 

It would be a fearful thought to lie one night in a 
house haunted with devils; what will it be then, to be 
companions with them forever? Christ intimates that 
there is one that is the prince of devils, the ring-leader 
of the rebellion and that the rest are his angels, his 
messengers, by whose agency he supports his king- 
dom. Christ and his angels will in that day triumph 
over the dragon and his angels. (Rev. 12 — 76). 

In the first place this fire is prepared for the devil 
and his angels, and if sinners make themselves associ- 
ates of satan by indulging their lusts they may thank 
themselves if they become sharers in that misery 
which was prepared for the devil and his angels 

Abraham denied this second request and said unto 
him "They have Moses and the prophets, let them 
hear them." 

"They have [Moses and the Prophets!" God's own 
appointed way and means of the conviction and con- 
version of sinners. The writte nword of God, let them 
read that and it will be sufficient warning for them. 
Let them hear that word and their souls shall live. 
"God will make an everlasting covenant with them even 
the sure mercies of David " Abraham gives him to 
understand that God will not go out of His own com- 



gb A message from Hell. 

mon method of convicting and converting sinners, to 
save the entire population of the earth. 

God is unchangeable, hence, he can not change 
his methods of saving sinners; and, if your brothers 
would be saved let them hear Moses and the prophets 
and exercise faith; and that will be sufficient to keep 
them from this place of torment. 

By this it appears that there is sufficient evidence 
in the Old Testament, in Moses and the prophets, to 
convince those, that will hear them impartially, that 
there is another life after this, and a state of rewards 
and punishments for good and bad men, for, that was 
the thing the rich man would have his brethren as- 
sured of and for that they were turned over to Moses 
and the prophets. 

But he urges his request yet farther in verse 
thirty — u Nay father Abraham! But if one went unto 
them from the dead they will repent." "I know they 
have Moses and the prophets and if they would read 
them or hear them read it would be sufficient; but 
they read them not, neither will they take the time 
from their worldly cares to hear them read and if they 
are left to search the Scriptures they will surely come 
to this place of torment. But if one went unto them 
from the dead they would repent." 

That would be something new and more apt to 
awaken and convict them of their sin. They are ac- 



. 



p8 A message from Hell. 

customed to hear of Moses and the prophets, they 
give them no attention but will go on disregarding 
them until it is too late for repentance. Foolish peo- 
ple are apt to think any method of conviction better 
than that which God has chosen and appointed for 
their salvation; but they will find out that God has 
pointed out the way, and the onW wa}^ by which a 
man may be saved. 

While on earth the rich man thought very little 
about salvation or it ma}^ be that like some other peo- 
ple he thought that religion is only for women and 
children, but he has now found out that a man netds 
religion more than an3^thing else in the world, and 
would now frighten his brethren into it by raising one 
from the dead and sending him as a missionary to his 
father's house. 

What a difference there is in him now! 

While on earth he did not believe in any excite- 
ment in religion; did not think it was necessary for 
him to look into divine things: he, no doubt, as many 
others have done, said that God was too good to cre- 
ate a man and then damn him forever; besides, if he at 
some future time, thought it was necessary he would 
turn to God, and as God was so anxious to save men 
He would, no doubt, receive him whenever he pre- 
sented himself. But now all such notions are 
changed He now believes that the first thing a man 



L.oFi 



ioo A message from Hell. 

should do on this earth, after reaching the years of 
accountability should be to "seek first the kingdom 
and His righteousness." He recognizes the fact that 
divine things should be all in all to man on earth; and 
he would create a great excitement in his father's 
house, and all the country round, by sending a man 
who had risen from the dead to preach to them. 

Ju^t think what a great excitement that would 
make in his father's house, of the news that would go 
out horn thence; some would believe it was true, oth- 
ers would say they saw a ghost; some would not 
pay any attention to it while others would come from 
afar to see this wonder of the age. 

Abraham insists upon the denial of his request 
and gives a conclusive reason in verse (3); "If they 
hear not Moses and the prophets and will not believe 
their testimony nor heed the warning thev give nei- 
their will they be persuaded though one rose from the 
dead." No, no, if they regard not the public reve- 
lation, which is confirmed by ministeis, neither 
would they be wrought upon by a private testimony 
to themselves. This matter has been long since set- 
tled, that God should speak by Moses and the proph- 
ets and not by immediate messenger from heaven. 

Israel chose this way on Mount Sinai because 
they could not bear the glory that shone about the 
countenance of the Holy One; and a messenger from 



102 A Message from Hell. 

the dead could say no more than is said in the Scrip- 
tures, neither could they say it with more authority. 

Besides there would be as much or more reason 
to suspect a cheat or delusion as to suspect the Scrip- 
tures, and infidels in one case would certainly be so in 
the other 

The same strength of corruption that breaks 
through the convictions of the written w 7 ord would 
certainly triumph over those by a witness from the 
dead; and though a sinner might be frightened at first 
by such a testimony when the fright was over he 
would return to his wallow. 

The Scripture is now the ordinary way by which. 
God makes known his mind to us and it is sufficient. 

It is presumption for us to prescribe any other 
way, neither can we have any ground to expect or 
pray for the grace of God to work upon us in any w 7 ay 
save the one he has prescribed. 

What our Savior here said was soon after verified 
in the unbelieving Jews who w r ould not hear Moses and 
the prophets Christ and the Apostle. Neither would 
they be persuaded though one rose from the dead. 
When Eutychus was raised to life the people that 
were present continued to hear Paul preach, but did 
not turn to God. Acts 22 — 10- 1 r. 

Let us not therefore desire visions and appari- 
tions but let us look to the law and to the testimony. 



W4 A Message from Hell. 

Isa. 8 — 19-20. For that is the sure word of prophecy 
upon which we may depend. 

Those, who reject divine revelation have not so 
much as human sence; neither do these rightly admit 
the oracles of reason who will not admit the oracles of 
God. 

Those that shut their eyes against the law of 
God's word will justly be abandoned to darkness and 
left to wander endlessly, and the sparks of their own 
kindling will do them no kindness. 

THK knd. 




IS THERE A HELL? 

I say yes, and will presently prove it by the 
Scriptures. To those who hold to the doctrine of 
final and universal salvation, I will say to you, that 
you have no support for this assumption in the word 
of God; for there is the same reason for believing that 
the punishment of the wicked is eternal, as there is for 
believing that the bliss of the righteous is eternal. 
1 'These shall go away into everlasting punishment, but 
the righteous into life everlasting// (Matt. 25 — 46.) 
If these statements of Jesus are not true, we do not 
know whether any of His other statements are true or 
not. He surely knew what He was talking about if 
He was the Son of God. Neither has the doctrine of 
annihilation, or the extinction of conscious being any 
sanction in the word of God. 

How could there be an everlasting punishment 
without an everlasting being to be punished? 

Why speak of "unquenchable flames," and of 
"the worm that never dies" unless there is a conscious 
being to endure these horrible realities? 

The doctrine of annihilation, or conditional im- 



108 A Message from Hell. 

mortality, is ^an infinite belittling" of a human being, 
who, by virtue of his creation in the immage of God 
seems to have been endowed with "endless being." 
Sin makes man eternally miserable — which is "eternal 
death," or "the second death." (Rev. 20 — 14). 
Nor is there any reason for believing that there will 
be another chance for salvation, after one has departed 
this life. While there are certain isolated statements 
of Scripture that, at the first glance, might seem to 
support the idea of a "second probation," the great 
mass of the Scripture teachings on this subject are di- 
rectly and determinedly opposed to it, and as we know 
that the dogmas of universalism, annihilation, and a 
second probation, all tend to lessen the motive for an 
immediate acceptance of the Gospel of Christ, we may 
justly regard them all so many devices of Satan to 
ensnare men, and cause them to lose their souls. 

Some may say what about the heathen? 

That the heathen will not be saved apart from 
the acceptance of Christ as their Savior, is manifest 
from the Scriptures; for they declare that "as many as 
have sinned without law shall also perish without 
law," (Rom. 2 — 12): that, "There is none other name 
(than that of Jesus) under Heaven, given among men, 
whereby we must be saved," (Acts 4 — 12) and, in fact, 
that, for all who have personally sinned, there is no 
salvation, except through faith in Jesus Christ. And 



i io A Message from Hell. 

if any heathen should keep the law, as "written in 
the heart," (Acte 2 — 14-15), it is difficult to see how 
this would fit him for Heaven; for "except a man be 
born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God," (John 
3 — 3); and there is absolutely no proof in the Bible 
that regeneration can take place except in virtue of 
Christ's atoning blood." By the deeds of the law 
there shall no flesh be justified in His sight," (Rom. 
3 — 20) whether the law be written on stones or in the 
heart. How utter^ contrar}^ to the teachings of the 
Scriptures, whether by precept or example, would it 
be for christians to try to induce the heathen to obey 
the law of nature written in their heart, with the view 
of saving them, and securing for themselves seats in 
Heaven! But why, you say, make such an adoo about 
Hell? I answer because I must preach a full Gospel 
with all its rewards and penalties; because, it is surely 
one of the elements that may help the sinner to "make 
up his mind" to seek Christ. 

To be sure, if nothing but the fear of Hell were 
brought to bear upon the sinner, he would never 
savingly trust Christ; but the Holy Spirit can might- 
ily use the Scriptures that speak of Hell as a place of 
eternal suffering, and by leading one to take hold of 
the promise of salvation to the penitent who trusts in 
Christ, He may lead him to shun Hell, and reach 
Heaven, through faith in Christ. 

Moreover if Christian parents, preachers, and 



ii2 A Message from Hell. 

christians generally had a firm belief that, without 
repentance and faith in Christ, their children, congre- 
gations and friands, woold be lost in Hell, how much 
more earnestly they would seek to lead them to Christ! 
It is because Hell has, to a great extent, lost its ter- 
rors through the false teachings, of the so called 
"Higher Critics/' that Christians have so slight a con- 
ception of it and of its endless realities. The terrible 
delusion of universalists, annihilationists, second pro- 
bationists. etc., have had much to do in lessening the 
terrors of Hell in the minds of the people, and eternity 
alone can tell what evil they have wrought. 

Is there a hell? Let the Scriptures answer! "For 
if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast 
them down to Hell, and delivered them into chains 
of darkness to be reserved unto judgment;" (2 Peter 
2 — 47). ''The way of life is above to the wise, that 
he may depart from Hell beneath." (Prov. 15 — 24.) 

i 'Her house is the way to Hell, going down to the 
chambers of death." (Prov. 7 27.) 

1 But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear, fear 
Him who, after he hath killed hath power to cast into 
Hell," (Luke 12—5). 

"And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off; it is better 
for thee to enter into life maimed than having two 
hands to go into Hell." (Mark 9 — 43). 

" Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye 



ii4 A Message from Hell. 

escape the damnation of Hell?" (Matt. 23—33). 

"The wicked shall be turned into Hell and all the 
nations that forget God." (Psa. 9 — T7). 

There is a Hell. What sort of a place is it? Let 
the Scriptures answer. 

"The sinners in Zion are afraid, fearfulness hath 
surprised the hypocrite. Who among us shall dwell 
with the devouring fire? Who among us shall dwell 
with everlasting burnings?" (Isa. 33 — 14). 

"The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath 
of God, which is poured out, without mixture, into 
the cup of His indignation; and he shall be tormented 
with fire and brimstone, in the presence of the holy 
angels and in the presence of the Lamb; and the 
smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever; 
and they have no rest day nor night." (Rev. 14 — 
10-11). 

"And the beast was taken, and with him the false 
prophet * * * * * * * these both were cast 
alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone." 
(Rev. 19 — 20). 

"And the devil that deceived them was cast into 
the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the 
false prophets are and shall be tormented day and 
night for ever and ever." (Rev. 20 — 10). 

This does not look like annihilation; for, if people 
can endure hell torments for a thousand years, and 



/ 1 6 A [Message from Hell. 

then be able to endure them for ever, and ever there is 
no room for annihilation. 

» Neither does it appear that those who are cast 
into hell will ever come out purified and saved. 
Neither annihilation nor universal salvation can find 
any countenance in the word of God. 

"But the fearful and unbelieving, and abominable, 
and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and 
all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth 
with fire and brimstone; which is the second death." 
(Rev. 21—8). 

"The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and 
they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that 
offend, and them that do iniquity, and shall cast them 
into a furnace of fire; there shall be wailing and gnash- 
ing of teeth." (Matt. 13—41-42). 

If these scriptures mean anything, it is a place of 
punishment. Dives said; "I am tormented in this 
flame." (Luke 16 — 54). 

Is the punishment everlasting? 

Who among us shall dwell in everlasting burn- 
ings?" (Isa. 33—I4)- 

'•Some of them that sleep in the earth shall awake; 
some to everlasting life and some to shame and ever- 
lasting contempt. } ' ( Dan 1 2- — 2 ) . 

"Whose fan is in his hand, and He shall thor- 
oughly purge His floor and gather His wheat into the 



/ 1 8 A Message from Hell. 

garner, but he will burn up the chaff with unquench- 
able fire. " ( Matt. 3—12). 

"And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off; it is bet- 
ter for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two 
hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be 
quenched; where their worm dieth not, and the fire is 
not quenched," (Mark 9 — 43-44). 

"Then shall he say to them on His left hand, de- 
part from me ye accursed, into everlasting fire, pre- 
pared for the devil and his angels," (Matt. 25 — 41). 

The punishment of the wicked is everlasting, if 
such a thought can be expressed in simple language; 
and if God's word, as it speaks so plainly on this sub- 
ject, does not mean what it says, who has sufficient 
knowledge to tell us just what it does man? "Let 
God be true and every man a liar. ' ' And now care- 
less and indifferent sinner let me give you a few pass- 
ages of Scripture showing you your state and peril in 
the sight of God. 

"Behold I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did 
my mother conceive me," (Psa. 51 — 5). 

"There is none righteous; no, not one." (Rom. 

3—io). 

"There is not a just man on the earth, that doeth 
good and sinneth not." (Ec. 7 — 20). 

"All have sinned, and come short of the glory of 
God " (Rom. 3—23). 

"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive our- 



120 A Message from Hell. 

selves, and the truth is not in us." (i John i — 8). 

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and des- 
perately wicked; who can know it?" (Jer. 17 — 9). 

4 'Wherefore, as by one man sin came into the 
world, and death by sin; and so death hath passed 
upon all men, for that all have sinned." (Rom. 5 — 12), 

"And God saw that the wickedness of man was 
great in the earth, and that every imagination ot the 
thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." 
(Gen. 6—5). 

"We are all as an unclean thing; and all our 
righteousness are as filthy rags," (Isa. 64 — 6). 

''Having the understanding darkened, being 
alienated from the life of God through the ignorance 
that is in them, because of the blindness of their 
hearts." (Eph. 4—18). 

"Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, 
adulteries, fornications, theft, false witness, blasphe- 
mies." Matt. (15 — 19). 

"From the soul of the foot even unto the head 
there is no soundness; but wounds, and bruises and 
putrifying sores. " (Isa. 1 — 6). 

"God looked down from Heaven upon the chil- 
dren of men, to see if there were any that did under- 
stand, that did seek God. Every one of them is gone 
back. They are altogether become filthy. There is 
none that doeth good; no, not one." (Psa. 53 — 2-3). 



122 A message from Hell. 

"The carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is 
not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." 
(Eph. 2—3). 

"The natural man receiveth not the things of the 
spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him; neither 
can he know them, because they are spiritually dis- 
cerned." (1 Cor. 2- -4). 

The Scriptures have much more to say on this 
subject, but the above is deemed sufficient to reveal 
the sad condition of the human family, and their utter 
hopelesseness apart from Jesus Christ. 

The Peril of the sinner. Hear what God's word 
says on this subject. 

"The face of the Lord is against them that do 
evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the 
earth." (Psa. 34—16). 

"But he that doeth wrong shall suffer for the 
wrong which he hath done; and there is no respect of 
persons." (Col. 3 — 25). 

"Be not deceived; God is not mocked; for what- 
soever a man soweth, that shall he also reap * * * 
He that soweth to this flesh shall of the flesh reap cor- 
ruption." (Gal. 6—7-8). 

"And to you who are troubled rest with us, when 
the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from Heaven, with 
His mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance 
on them that know not God, and obey not the Gospel 



124 * A Message from Hell. 

of our Lord Jesus Christ; who shall be punished with 

everlasting destruction from the presence of God, and 

. from the glory of His power." (II Thess. i — 7-9). 

"But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when 
it can not rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. 
There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked." 
(Isa. 57 — 20-21). 

"Sin when it is finished, bringeth forth death." 
(Jas. I — 15). 

"The sting of sin is death." (I Cor. 15 — 56). 

"The soul that sinneth, it shall die." (Ez.18— 4). 

"The wages of sin is death." (Rom. 6 — 23). 

' He that despised Moses' law died without mercy, 
under two or three witnesses. Of how much sore 
punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy 
who hath trodden under foot the Son of God." (Heb. 
jo — 28-29). 

"Every one shall give account of himself to God. 
As I live saith the Lord every knee shall bow to me, 
and every tongue shall confess to God." (Rom. 
14 — 1 1-12). 

"The hour cometh in which all that are in their 
graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; they 
that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and 
they that have done evil unto the resurrection of 
damnation." (John 5 — 28-29). 

"Be sure your sins will find you out." (Numb. 
32—23). 



126 A Message from Hell. 

"The wicked shall be turned into hell and all the 
nations that forget God." (Psa. 9 — 17). 

"Kvery idle word that man shall speak, the} 7 
shall give account thereof in the day of judgment." 
(Matt. 12—36). 

"These shall go away into everlasting punish- 
ment, but the righteous into everlasting life." (Matt. 
25—46). 

"Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, 
prepared for the devil and his angels." (Matt. 2-5 — 

40. 

Much more might be quoted from the Scriptures 
to the same effect. How unspeakably gloomy is the 
prospect of the sinner, viewed in the light of God's 
word? Have we friends and kindred exposed to eter- 
nal death? If so, let us do all that we can to arrest 
their dreadful doom. 

What is sin? 

"The thought of foolishness is sin." (Prov. 
24—9). 

Unbelief is sin: "Of sin because they believe not 
on me." (John 16 — 9). 

"Whatsoever is not of faith is sin." (Rom. 

H—23). 

"The transgression of the law is sin." (I John 

3-4). 

"All unrighteousness is sin." (I John 5 — 17). 
vSins of omission: "Therefore to him that know- 



128 A Message from Hell. 

eth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. " 
(Jas'4— 17). 

The origin of sin: "He that committeth sin is of 
the devil." (I John 3—8). 

Sins of commission are sins committed in viola- 
tion of some prohibitive law: as, "Thou shalt not kill." 
"Thou shalt not steal," etc. 

A sin of omission attaches to one who fails to 
keep o positive law of God; as, "Thou shalt love the 
Lord thy God with all thy heart;" "Thou shalt love 
thy neighbor as thyself." (Matt. 23 — 37-39). 

Sins of omission are fearfully numerous; and 
these sins leave the soul in guilt and impotency as tru- 
ly as do sins of commission. 

All are included under sin: "We have before 
proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under 
sin." (Rom. 3 — 10). 

Persons may sin, who do not have the written 
law; and as many as do so sin will perish, unless they 
receive pardon through Christ: u For as many as 
have sinned without law shall perish without law." 
(Rom. 2 — 12). 



HOW TO BE SAVED. 

The first work that the Holy Spirit does toward 
leading one to Christ is to convince or convict him of 
sin (John 16 — 8). This He usually does through the 
preached Word, or through the instructions and ad- 
monitions of pious parents or other earnest Christians. 
The sinner may resist conviction, and drive the Spirit 
from him; thus preferring to remain in sin and dark- 
ness rather than to be saved. But it one will yield to 
conviction, he will speedily reach the place of true 
repentance — which is godly sorrow for sin, death to 
the love of sin, and a fixed purpose to break with it 
forever. 

Hear what God's word says about repentance. 

Jesus says: "I am not come to call the righteous, 
but sinners to repentance." (Matt 9 — 13). 

The Holy Spirit says: "Repent, therefore, and 
be converted, that your sins may be blotted out." 
(Acts 3 — 19). 

"He now commandeth all men everywhere to re- 
pent." (Acts 17 — 30) 

'' Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation 



1 32 A [Message from Hell. 

not to be repented of; but the sorrow of the world 
worketh death." (II Cor. 7 — 10). 

"Not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth 
thee to repentance." (Rom. 2 — 4). 

"That repentance and remission of sins should be 
preached in his name among all notions." (Luke 
24—47.) 

"Not willing that any should perish, but that all 
should come to repentance." (II Peter 3 — 9). 

"I say unto you that likewise joy shall be in 
Heaven over one sinner that repenteth." (Luke 
15—37)- 

"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a bro- 
ken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not des- 
pise." (Psa. 51 — 17). 

"Repent, and believe the Gospel " (Mark 1 — 15). 

"Testifying, both to the Jews and to the Greeks, 
repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord 
Jesus Christ." (Acts 20 — 21). When the penitent 
sinner is thoroughly killed to the love of sin he will no 
longer wish to commit sin, even if he knew that its 
penalty would never be visited upon him. 

He has his fill of sin. When the penitent reaches 
the place, where he utterly despairs of pardon and 
salvation through deeds of law, he is then in a right 



1 34 d Message from Hell. 

attitude to accept Christ as his personal Sin bearer 
any Savior. 

Faith in Christ, the last step. 

When the penitent soul sees salvation in none 
other, and then deliberately commits his poor guilty 
soul to Christ, and trusts Him for pardon and salva- 
tion, instantly he is pardoned, regenerated, and saved. 

The word says to the penitent who realizes his 
lost condition, and desires to be saved: i<c Believe on the 
Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." (Acts 
16—31). 

Oh sinsick soul, fear not to trust Him. He hath 
already put away your sin by His death for you on 
the cross; and now, if you will only believe it and trust 
Him you will realize your pardon; your burden of sin 
will be removed; the peace of God will come into your 
heart and his love will be shed abroad therein." 
(Rom. 5—1-5). 

Illustration — If you had a matter of business that 
had to go through the forms of law, and you knew a 
perfectly competent and trustworthy lawyer who had 
skill in attending to just such cases, and you should 
entrust your business to him, and rest satisfied that he 
would manage it properly — that would be faith. You 
might have all confidence in the skill and trustwor- 
thiness of the lawyer; but, if you did not entrust your 
business to him, it would do you no good. 

Jesus Christ is the only Advocate that can adjust 



ij6 A Message from Hell. 

the charge against us at the high court of Heaven; 
and, whoever really commits his case to Him, will 
speedily realize that it has been properly adjusted; 
and through the Holy Spirit, he will receive the wit- 
ness and assurance that his past sins have all been 
washed away in the blood of Jesus Christ. 

Other Scriptures — "God so loved the world, that 
He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever be- 
lieveth in Him might not perish, but have everlasting 
life. For God sent not His Son into the world to 
condemn the world, but that the world through Him 
might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not 
condemned; but he that belie veth not is condemned 
already, because he hath not believed on the only be- 
gotten Son of God." (John 3— 16-18) 

i 'He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; 
and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life, 
but the wrath of God abideth on him." (v. 36); see 
also John 1 — 15; 6 — -46; Rom. 1 — 17; I John 5 — 10; 
etc. , etc. 

THE END. 



MAR 11 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS , 



021 226 168 3 



